Talmudic Evidence for the Messiah at 30 C.E.

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In the centuries
following the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem (70 CE), the Jewish
people began writing two versions of Jewish thought, religious history and
commentary. One was written in Palestine and became known as the Jerusalem
Talmud. The other was written in Babylon and was known as the Babylonian
Talmud.

We read in the Jerusalem Talmud:

"Forty years
before the destruction of the Temple, the western light went out, the
crimson thread remained crimson, and the lot for the Lord always came up in
the left hand. They would close the gates of the Temple by night and get up
in the morning and find them wide open" (Jacob Neusner, The Yerushalmi,
p.156-157). [the Temple was destroyed in 70 CE]

A similar passage in the Babylonian Talmud states:

"Our rabbis
taught: During the last forty years before the destruction of the Temple the
lot ['For the Lord'] did not come up in the right hand; nor did the
crimson-colored strap become white; nor did the western most light shine;
and the doors of the Hekel [Temple] would open by themselves" (Soncino
version, Yoma 39b).

What are these
passages talking about? Since both Talmuds recount the same information, this
indicates the knowledge of these events was accepted by the widespread Jewish
community.

The Miracle of the "Lot"

The first of these
miracles concerns a random choosing of the "lot" which was cast on the Day
of Atonement (Yom Kippur). The lot chosen determined which of two goats would
be "for the Lord" and which goat would be the "Azazel" or
"scapegoat." During the two hundred years before 30 CE, when the High Priest
picked one of two stones, again this selection was governed by chance, and
each year the priest would select a black stone as often as a white stone. But
for forty years in a row, beginning in 30 CE, the High Priest always picked
the black stone! The odds against this happening are astronomical (2 to the
40th power). In other words, the chances of this occurring are 1 in
approximately 5,479,548,800 or about 5.5 billion to one! By comparison,
your chances of winning your local state or municipal-run cash Lottery would
be much more favorable!

The lot for Azazel,
the black stone, contrary to all the laws of chance, came up 40 times in a row
from 30 to 70 AD! This was considered a dire event and signified something had
fundamentally changed in this Yom Kippur ritual. This casting of lots is also
accompanied by yet another miracle which is described next.

The Miracle of the Red Strip

The second miracle
concerns the crimson strip or cloth tied to the Azazel goat. A portion of this
red cloth was also removed from the goat and tied to the Temple door. Each
year the red cloth on the Temple door turned white as if to signify the
atonement of another Yom Kippur was acceptable to the Lord. This annual event
happened until 30 CE when the cloth then remained crimson each year to the
time of the Temple's destruction. This undoubtedly caused much stir and
consternation among the Jews. This traditional practice is linked to Israel
confessing its sins and ceremonially placing this nation's sin upon the Azazel
goat. The sin was then removed by this goat's death. Sin was represented by
the red color of the cloth (the color of blood). But the cloth remained
crimson that is, Israel's sins were not being pardoned and "made white."

As God told Israel through Isaiah the prophet:

''Come, let us
reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet [crimson],
they shall be white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be
as [white] wool'' (Isaiah 1:18).

The clear indication
is that the whole community had lost the Lord's attention in relation to
something that occurred in 30 CE. The yearly atonement achieved through the
typical Yom Kippur observance was not being realized as expected. Atonement
apparently was to be gained in some other way. Who or what would provide the
atonement for another year?

Concerning the
crimson strip though not mentioned in the Scriptures and long before 30 C.E. during
the 40 years Simon the Righteous was High Priest, a crimson thread which was
associated with his person always turned white when he entered the Temple's
innermost Holy of Holies. The people noticed this. Also, they noted that "the
lot of the LORD" (the white lot) came up for 40 straight years during Simon's
priesthood. They noticed that the "lot" picked by the priests after Simon
would sometimes be black, and sometimes white, and that the crimson thread
would sometimes turn white, and sometimes not. The Jews came to believe that
if the crimson thread turned white, that God approved of the Day of Atonement
rituals and that Israel could be assured that God forgave their sins. But
after 30 CE, the crimson thread never turned white again for 40 years, till
the destruction of the Temple and the cessation of all Temple rituals!

What did the Jewish
nation do in 30 CE to merit such a change at Yom Kippur? By some accounts, on
April 5, 30 CE (i.e., on the 14th of Nisan, the day of the Passover sacrifice)
the Messiah, Yeshua, was cut off from Israel, himself put to death as a
sacrifice for sin. To this event there is a transference of the atonement now
no longer achieved through the two goats as offered at Yom Kippur. Like an
innocent Passover lamb, the Messiah was put to death though no fault was found
in Him! But unlike Temple sacrifices or the Yom Kippur events (as detailed
above) where sin is only covered over for a time, the Messianic sacrifice
comes with the promise of forgiveness of sins through grace given by God to
those who accept a personal relationship with Messiah. This is essentially a
one time event for each person's lifetime and not a continual series of annual
observances and animal sacrifices. The mechanism providing forgiveness of sin
changed in 30 CE.

The Miracle of the Temple Doors

The next miracle,
which the Jewish authorities acknowledged, was that the Temple doors swung
open every night of their own accord. This too occurred for forty years,
beginning in 30 CE The leading Jewish authority of that time, Yohanan ben
Zakkai, declared that this was a sign of impending doom, that the Temple
itself would be destroyed.

The Jerusalem Talmud states:

"Said Rabban
Yohanan Ben Zakkai to the Temple, 'O Temple, why do you frighten us? We know
that you will end up destroyed. For it has been said, 'Open your doors, O
Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars' " (Zechariah 11:1)' (Sota
6:3).

Yohanan Ben Zakkai
was the leader of the Jewish community during the time following the
destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, when the Jewish government was transferred
to Jamnia, some thirty miles west of Jerusalem.

Might the doors have
opened to also signify that all may now enter the Temple, even to its
innermost holy sections. The evidence supported by the miracles described
above suggests the Lord's presence had departed from the Temple. This was no
longer just a place for High Priests alone, but the doors swung open for all
to enter the Lord's house of worship.

The Miracle of the Temple Menorah

The fourth miracle
was that the most important lamp of the seven candle-stick Menorah in the
Temple went out, and would not shine. Every night for 40 years (over 12,500
nights in a row) the main lamp of the Temple lampstand (menorah) went out of
its own accord no matter what attempts and precautions the priests took to
safeguard against this event!

Earnest Martin states:

"In fact, we are told
in the Talmud that at dusk the lamps that were unlit in the daytime (the
middle four lamps remained unlit, while the two eastern lamps normally
stayed lit during the day) were to be re-lit from the flames of the western
lamp (which was a lamp that was supposed to stay lit all the time it was
like the 'eternal' flame that we see today in some national monuments)...

"This 'western
lamp' was to be kept lit at all times. For that reason, the priests kept
extra reservoirs of olive oil and other implements in ready supply to make
sure that the 'western lamp' (under all circumstances) would stay lit. But
what happened in the forty years from the very year Messiah said the
physical Temple would be destroyed? Every night for forty years the western
lamp went out, and this in spite of the priests each evening preparing in a
special way the western lamp so that it would remain constantly burning all
night!" (The Significance of the Year CE 30, Ernest Martin, Research
Update, April 1994, p.4).

Again, the odds
against the lamp continually going out are astronomical. Something out of the
ordinary was going on. The "light" of the Menorah representing contact
with God, His Spirit, and His Presence was now removed. This special
demonstration occurred starting with the crucifixion of the Messiah!

It should be clear to
any reasonable mind that there is no natural way to explain all these four
signs connected with the year 30 CE. The only possible explanation has to be
supernatural.

After 30 CE, and the
death of the Messiah, great trouble and awesome trials began to come upon the
Jewish nation. Yeshua Himself foretold it. As He was led away to be crucified,
Yeshua warned the women of Jerusalem:

But Jesus, turning to
them, said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for
yourselves and for your children. For indeed the days are coming in which
they will say, 'Blessed are the barren, wombs that never bore, and
breasts which never nursed!' Then they will begin `to say to the mountains,
"Fall on us!" and to the hills, "Cover us!" ' "For if they do these
things in the green wood, what will be done in the dry?" (Luke
23:28-31).

When we take an objective look at the events of 30 CE, who can doubt that it
was indeed the true year of the crucifixion and resurrection of the true Messiah
God sent to Israel? Who can deny that He is the one and only true Messiah?
Who else has fulfilled all the prophecies of the Old Testament — including the
amazing prophecy of Daniel 9 and the ''70 weeks,'' coming at the very year
predicted for the Messiah to appear?